CARACAS, June 23, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - The US capture of Nicolas Maduro put Venezuela on "the right path," interim leader Delcy Rodriguez said Monday.

Maduro's former vice president Rodriguez took power in Venezuela after his ouster by US forces during a raid on Caracas in January.

Since then, she has reopened the country to private investment and foreign interests, closely watched over by US President Donald Trump.

In a speech at a ceremony in Caracas, Rodriguez celebrated the resumption of diplomatic relations with Washington since US forces captured her country's leader.

"January 3, 2026 marked a turning point in national politics and in our view of international relations," she said.

Addressing international guests at the event, she said Venezuela "could not have imagined" the post-Maduro era this time last year.

"Almost six months have already gone by, and I feel that it has been the right path," she said, adding that existing differences between Venezuela and the United States could be settled "through diplomatic channels."

Caracas and Washington have restored diplomatic relations after years of severed ties, and US sanctions on Venezuela's oil industry have eased as Trump covets its rich resources.

Maduro is imprisoned in New York where he is facing drug-trafficking charges.

His son, Nicolas Maduro Guerra, attended Rodriguez's speech on Monday.